"Traveling Trophy" Gets Youth Involved In Hobby

Want to know howto get young people involved in the old car hobby? Just give them a positive experience when they visit a show.

Car collector Jim Rugowski, of Greenville, Wis., did his part this past weekend. The previous Saturday, Jim’s 1960 Triumph TR3-A had taken a trophy at a show. Jim left that event, so a friend picked the award up and delivered it to him at British Car Field Days in Sussex, Wis.

At the show, a young boy and young girl came to look over his yellow roadster. They liked the car and the boy saw the trophy and yelled “Look at that!” to his sister. Jim was watching and asked the boy if he liked the trophy. When he said he did, Jim gave it to him. (Jim has a shelf full of prizes for his many cars). Naturally, the girl asked, “What do I get?” So Jim gave her the Hagerty Insurance sack that his got in his car show goodie bag. She could use it to carry a stuffed animal in it, he told her.

As they walked away, the boy said to his sister, “You can have the trophy for one week and then I’ll take it for the next week.’ In a sense it became a “traveling trophy” and hopefully it will lead two youngsters down the road to the collector car hobby.